HYBRID EXPERIENCE 2022 Orchestrate Direct Mail to Increase Response Rates By 20x
HOW TO INCORPORATE DIRECT MAIL INTO YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY
Today, the human experience is a hybrid one, as people move seamlessly between the physical and digital worlds. Engaging them holistically is the only way to foster true engagement, which is what we call the “Hybrid Experience.” Orchestrating direct mail within your multichannel strategy can increase response rates by 20x or more. Whether you’re driving awareness, pipeline, or customer engagement, combining physical and digital marketing produces greater results than can be achieved by either alone.
To create hybrid experiences that earn 20x response rates you should:
- Blend the digital with the physical by incorporating direct mail into your multichannel strategy;
- Automate the physical touch based on digital intent signals (knowing what to send to whom and when);
- Create 1:1 personalization at infinite scale by mapping fields from your CRM to customize the content for each recipient;
- Build brand affinity by tying your message to the physical product you send;
- Collect a preferred address from your prospects and customers so you know where to send your direct mail in a hybrid work model.
HOW TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF INTENT SIGNALS AND BEHAVIORAL DATA
Knowing where your prospect or customer is in their journey and sending them personalized content that speaks to them when they are most engaged can do wonders for increasing conversion rates. Not only does triggering off intent signals create a better overall customer experience, but it also reduces the time spent executing campaigns. The more data you can collect and use, the better your campaigns will perform over time.
Awareness
When triggering off intent signals for prospects in the awareness stage of the funnel, you want to use lead-scoring technologies to measure engagement and assign a score so you know how engaged and interested your prospect is. Based on this score, you can then trigger a direct-mail send when either the prospect’s engagement has declined (needs more nurturing), or when the prospect’s engagement is ramping up and you want to further educate them before asking for a meeting.
Lead Generation
Once a prospect’s engagement has peaked, but they have yet to respond to a BDR’s email outreach for a meeting, have the BDR trigger a direct-mail piece that will further inform the prospect about the topic they’ve shown interest in. Then, on delivery, have the BDR call to request a meeting.
Customer Engagement
Hybrid experiences aren’t just for the buyer journey—you can create experiences in the customer journey, as well. To ensure you are sending the physical touch when it will have the most impact, identify customers who are not engaged of late. You can do this by analyzing which customers haven’t logged in, spoke to their representative, or performed other KPIs that indicate account success. Triggering direct mail to help educate, nurture, train, or show appreciation when the customer is at a specific stage in their lifecycle will boost both engagement and retention rates.
HOW TO PERSONALIZE NOTES FOR PROSPECTS AND CUSTOMERS
While triggering off intent signals can send direct mail at the right time, you also want to make sure you are personalizing your message to boost response rates even more. There are many ways to write a personalized notecard, but the goal is to elicit a response from your prospect/customer.
PFL experience shows that there are five key components that your notecard must have:
1. Personalization
Start building a 1:1 relationship with your prospects/customers at infinite scale. Map data from your CRM as variable fields in your direct- mail template to make your message relevant and personal. Include fields such as first name, title, company name, industry, and sales rep contact information.
2. Frame the Problem
Show that you understand the problem or business challenge your prospect or customer is facing. This is where you insert your value proposition. Does your value prop speak to different titles in the organization? Again, you can use variable text fields to automatically customize the message for each persona.
3. Create Urgency
Indicate to your prospect or customer that the time to respond is now. What are they missing (time, money, resources, etc.) by not responding to you in this moment? Make this point very clearly.
4. The Best Solution
Explain to them why your solution is the best out there. Detail the ways in which your solution is better than the competition’s.
5. Call-to-Action
Track engagement by using a QR code that leads recipients to take an action (fill out a form, download an e-guide, view a video, etc.). Not only can you track if they scanned the code, but you can also trigger an automatic action (for instance, a sales call) if they scan the code.
HOW TO CREATE STRONG RELATIONSHIPS AND BRAND AFFINITY WITH CUSTOMERS
Strong brands are powered by marketing strategies that build emotional connections with customers. These relationships result in “brand affinity” and affinity drives business. Consider these principles when crafting your next direct- mail experience:
Brand the Experience
A poorly branded customer experience will result in confusion upon delivery rather than excitement. When you send a well-branded, attractively designed mailer or package with personalized messaging, you elevate your direct mail from simply a box to a memorable brand experience: You show that you were authentic and thoughtful and took the time to pay careful attention to details. You signal the value of your brand through the quality of the package and the experience.
Engage the Five Senses
Engaging your customers’ five senses can be a powerful tool for building brand affinity. Adding sensory elements can create more memorable experiences that customers will associate with your brand. Customize your direct mail with scented inks, soft touch, black lighting to reveal hidden messages, or special effects, such as foil or die cutting to add flair and style that help you stand out from the rest.
Celebrate Your Customers
Celebrating your customers is yet another way to create memorable moments. Automating direct mail to trigger on birthdays or key milestones worth celebrating can be a fun and effective way to say “thank you” for being a colleague and a customer.
Personalize Experiences
As consumers, we pay attention to content that appears to have been created for or tailored to us. We forge stronger attachments to brands that treat us like we’re their only buyer or customer. You can apply this logic to your direct mail and the digital experience you lead the prospect to. Add QR codes to your direct-mail to guide prospects/customers back to digital channels to a read blog post, watch a video, or register for an event based on that customer’s preferences or interests—all of which create stronger relationships and a generally superior customer experience.
HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF PREFERRED ADDRESS COLLECTION
So, we trust the case is made that sending direct mail that is personalized and automated based on behavioral intent signals can boost response rates by 20x or more when incorporated in your multichannel strategy. And we hope this tutorial helps you succeed. In today’s hybrid work model (which looks to be here to stay), asking your prospect or customer for their preferred address assures that they will get the package at the right place, at the right time. This allows you to blend the physical and digital worlds to create a memorable customer experience and build brand affinity.
